My son really wants a BTS but.....

[Richard.C]

naah mate,tiliqua have been reported well into there 30,s as well,issue is alot of folk havnt kept them long enough to see

alot obviously dont live that long,shingles and pythons as well,but they are definatly capable of it if kept properly

[Spankenstyne]

Fire skinks might be another option. You get the "skinkiness" factor but a smaller size and they are stunningly coloured.

(not my pic)

[Richard.C]

they are nice looking

[Snickers :)]

In my experience fire skinks are quite skittish and don't seem to enjoy being held, but perhaps the ones I knew (I worked in a pet store that sold them) just needed to be tamed.

[Spankenstyne]

While I've never owned any myself, I do have a friend who keeps & has bred them and all of his have become quite tame with regular handling. His CB babies were even quite tame right away with very little handling. There are still many WC brought in & would most likely be a big factor in the behaviours you've seen Snickers.

[isis1311]

Thanks everyone for the great suggestions! He has decided on a super giant leopard gecko.....now I gotta find one that wont break the bank!

He does have a fire skink. It is always running away and hiding from him and stays buried most of the time. It might be because the skink is young. My son really wants a lizard that he can hold and enjoy. He would really love a fire skink that is tame but, we haven't had any luck finding some. His older brother has a BTS and he sees him taking it out and enjoying it and he really wants to be able to do that.

[supersnakeman101]

well good luck with the leo and post pics on the off topic section of the forum

[Coomassie]

Thanks everyone for the great suggestions! He has decided on a super giant leopard gecko.....now I gotta find one that wont break the bank!

He does have a fire skink. It is always running away and hiding from him and stays buried most of the time. It might be because the skink is young. My son really wants a lizard that he can hold and enjoy. He would really love a fire skink that is tame but, we haven't had any luck finding some. His older brother has a BTS and he sees him taking it out and enjoying it and he really wants to be able to do that.

It is possible to tame a fire skink but it takes a lot of time. I currently have a semi-tame fire skink. Since the day we brought him home, we have been hand feeding him so he gets used to the idea that we provide food rather than are big mean predators. I've recently attempted to start handling him (inside his tank) but it is a slow process. Leopard geckos generally come pretty tame. I have a giant tremper albino named Bubba who is as sweet as can be. He is close to a foot long and weighs about 120 grams. The problem with giants is that the genetics are pretty...variable. You are going to have to buy a nearly full grown one to be sure you get a giant. I've talked to a few other breeders about this and they came to the same conclusion.

[LarissaLurid]

Fire skinks can become tame, like Coomassie said, it does take work, but if you work with him/her enough the skink will tame down. I've seen tame ones before that can even be brought outside and just be held no problem. (although i definitely wouldn't recommend taking the skink outside for obvious reasons) But juveniles are more flighty, just take a lot of time and try to feed with tongs if you can so the skink sees you are here to help him not hurt him, and once again as Coomassie said, I would also try handling within the cage so you don't have to try to hold him tightly or worry if he walks or jumps off your hand. I'd recommend putting your hand in the cage slowly and just holding it there and talking to the skink without trying to touch it at first. If it is so scared that it runs and hides just from seeing you, i'd first try to slowly walk over and talk to it everyday and just sit in front of the tank so it can see you arent going to try to touch it. then after a while of the skink getting used to you walking over and sitting there without hiding, id move to slowly putting my hand in the tank without attempting to touch him and just hold it there and do this daily, little steps will make the skink more comfortable with you. :]